Okay. Did you ordered the Refurb one? How's the hdmiboard problems with onkyo?

I conducted the necessary research to satisfy my concerns before ordering. In this regard, I refer you to the 818 owners thread. This should make you feel more comfortable about ordering this unit before you lose the opportunity. BTW: I have been following the 818 thread for quite some time.

Squaretrade won't provide coverage for refurbs, unless they are from a certain list of companies, of which Onkyo is not. I called to verify.

Follow up, this is the info that they provided for refurb coverage:

Unfortunately, we do not offer warranty for refurbished items anymore. just like your home audio receivers purchased from Onkyo, warranty will only be available through our selected resellers like, Amazon, Ebay and Tiger direct.

Mine looks and smells newish except for a small rub on the blackened part of the display screen and what looks like some fingerprint marks around the buttons underneath the panel. The rubbed area can only been seen if you are up close inspecting it under bright lighting. Also has a white refurbished sticker seal indicating it's only a 1 year limited warranty. Mine is definitely not a new unit.

Mine looks and smells newish except for a small rub on the blackened part of the display screen and what looks like some fingerprint marks around the buttons underneath the panel. The rubbed area can only been seen if you are up close inspecting it under bright lighting. Also has a white refurbished sticker seal indicating it's only a 1 year limited warranty. Mine is definitely not a new unit.

I spoke with Onkyo. All units sold as refubs are refurbs. They are all stored in different warehouses than the new units. I was kind of hoping that Onkyo could have oversold the refurbs and would be sending new units in their place. My wishful thinking has come to an end. But, by the same token, I'm still stoked about getting an 818 for this price.

i can wait until next year to get this unit, who knows maybe they will sell it for $300 Brand new.

$300 is a pipe dream. As popular as the 818 is, I doubt that you will see any new units next year; much less at $300 a pop. However, you may see some good deals come along on new units in the next few months as Onkyo depletes its inventory for the sales of its 828 and 929 models.

$300 is a pipe dream. As popular as the 818 is, I doubt that you will see any new units next year; much less at $300 a pop. However, you may see some good deals come along on new units in the next few months as Onkyo depletes its inventory for the sales of its 828 and 929 models.

only time will tell. but my denon 1612 still rockin as hell. still giving me a good sound quality.

I got my refurb unit yesterday and it has one scuff in the paint on the top, right, rear corner but other than that looks perfect. I won't have time to set it up for a couple of weeks but I did verify that it powers up. I must say that it is a beautiful looking piece of gear. Much thanks to the person who posted the deal. I have had my eye on this unit for awhile.

Got some play time with mine this weekend - unit is in perfect condition. I really like this receiver. Coming from a Denon 4311 in my downstairs setup I actually think I like this one better. The only major annoyance is the lack of a zone 1 trigger. Nothing my Logitech remote can't fix though.

Got some play time with mine this weekend - unit is in perfect condition. I really like this receiver. Coming from a Denon 4311 in my downstairs setup I actually think I like this one better. The only major annoyance is the lack of a zone 1 trigger. Nothing my Logitech remote can't fix though.

A few things I like about the Onkyo vs. the 4311:
-I find the GUI/interface easier to use
-Has wifi capability and built in spotify (huge plus for me)
-HDMI synching behaves much better with this unit with my equipment (huge plus for me)
-Has the ability to tweak eq manually, even though only 5 band
-It cost me a LOT less

Keep in mind I've had the best results when using only one sub out of my Denon, so the second output isn't a huge plus for me. I also don't use the height or wide channels.

Pros for the 4311 vs. the 818:
-Dual / independent sub outs (although I haven't seen much benefit here personally)
-Audyssey setup is quite a bit faster between channels
-12V trigger on zone 1 is a big plus
-Long term reliability?? The 4311ci has been tried and true for some time now.

I got a reasonably good deal at 1220 for a new 4311. I paid 500 for the 818, although it was a refurb. That is a huge difference in price!

Mine arrived today ($500 shipped). It was clear when I ordered that cables and batteries are not included with refurbs??? Well I unboxed it and it had everything nicely packaged up including batteries and all the cables. Can't find anything wrong with it cosmetically. Unit powered on and went into setup mode. That's all I'll be able to do for a few weeks until I move and get speakers.